{"nrhp_refnum":"73002259","name":"Goodyear Airdock","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"S side of the Akron Airport","address_restricted":false,"city":"Akron","county":"Summit County","state":"OH","lat":41.03201841100008,"lon":-81.47067204199999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-04-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A huge semi-paraboloid airship construction hangar on the south side of the Akron Airport in Akron, Summit County, Ohio, built in 1929 by the Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation from plans by the Wilbur Watson Engineering Company of Cleveland.","why_significant":"It made Akron a center for developing and building lighter-than-air ships, and the Navy airships Akron and Macon were built inside it. At the time it was the largest building in the world without interior supports. Its engineering is notable, including 600-ton spherical doors and a structure mounted on rollers to allow for temperature expansion.","narrative":"Rising beside the Akron Airport, this enormous airship hangar has been likened to half a silkworm's cocoon cut lengthwise. It measures 1,175 feet long, 325 feet wide and 211 feet high, and its sheet metal skin is attached to eleven parabolic arches spaced 80 feet apart. Identical two-piece spherical doors close each end; each piece weighs 600 tons and rolls on 40 wheels set on curved railroad track. The building rests on rollers so it can expand and contract with temperature changes. Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation built it between April and November 1929 for about 2.2 million dollars, using plans by the Wilbur Watson Engineering Company. At the time it was the world's largest building without interior supports. It made Akron a center for lighter-than-air ship construction, and the Navy dirigibles Akron and Macon were built there in 1931 and 1934. Later it housed the photographic division of Goodyear Aerospace and remained in excellent, unaltered condition.","period_of_significance":"1929 (20th Century)","architect_builder":"Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation (builder); plans by Wilbur Watson Engineering Company of Cleveland, Ohio","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition excellent and unaltered; no longer used for its original purpose, and it houses the photographic division of Goodyear Aerospace Corporation.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.809164-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/73002259.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002259/a676abb008-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002259/a676abb008-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"The original uploader was IanManka at English Wikipedia.","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goodyear_Airdock_exterior.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">The original uploader was IanManka at English Wikipedia.</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Goodyear_Airdock_exterior.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71991627","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodyear_Airdock","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3110737"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/summit-county/goodyear-airdock-73002259/"}